A HEARTFELT WELCOME
HOME. Signs and flags adorn Carlisle Center to welcome Major Michael Jacobson of Russell Street home from Iraq. Michael
and his wife Monica have lived in Carlisle for about a year.
(Photo by Ellen Huber)

OBITUARY

James F. Keefe Long-time Carlisle resident

James F. Keefe, 72, of Maple Street, died on November 17 at the Lifecare Center of Acton.

Mr. Keefe was born in Cambridge on September 4, 1934. He was the son of the late Thomas and Pauline (Judge) Keefe. A former resident of Arlington and Cambridge, he served in the United States Marine Corps during the Korean Conflict from 1953 to 1956. Mr. Keefe was honorably discharged with a rank of Corporal.

He was employed at Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge from the age of 17 until his retirement at 63. He was a printer and worked with graphic arts.

He had lived in Carlisle since 1965 and enjoyed swimming, gardening, dancing and trips to Cape Cod. He attended St. Irene Catholic Church.

Mr. Keefe was the husband of Judith (Posco) Keefe and the late Angela DiFrancesco, who died in 1980. He is also survived by his son, James F. Keefe, Jr. and his wife Bonnie of Chelmsford; his daughter Judith A. Miller and her husband Shadrach of Syracuse, New York; two brothers, Harold and William; sisters Mary and Kay and his grandson, James D. Keefe of Chelmsford. He was predeceased by his brothers, Allen and Ronald.

His funeral was held from the Bedford Funeral Home on Wednesday, November 22, followed by a funeral mass at St. Irene Church.

On November 11 and 12, Boy Scout Troop 135 went on a great camping trip to the White Mountains Tripyramid Trail. The weather was good, which made the trip that much more enjoyable. We were a large group of over 20 Scouts and parents. The Tripyramid has three peaks; North, Middle and South peaks, each about 4,000 feet tall.

At 7:30 a.m. we met at Larsen's chicken farm, packed up and drove two hours to the Livermore trail head. When we got there we put on our heavy, 20-to-25-pound backpacks and hiked two miles on the Livermore Trail. We went off the trail into the woods to find a campsite, which needed to be at least 200 yards from the main trail, claimed our spots and set up camp. After putting our tents up and making sleeping gear ready, we put a bear bag high up in the trees, then went on an aggressive hike on the seven-mile-long Tripyramid Trail. The first two miles on the Livermore was easy but when we got to the Tripyramid it was a lot more difficult. There was a 1,000-foot steep rock slide called the North Slide which was fun, then another hike up to the top of North Peak which had some snow and where a beautiful view all around to Waterville Valley was our reward. Next we hiked another two miles to Middle Peak and then to South Peak. Then another three miles back to the Livermore Trail and by the time we reached our campsite at 5 p.m. it was just getting dark. After everyone was accounted for, we started cooking dinner, then sat around the campfire roasting marshmallows and talking. Every trip I've taken with the Scouts I have had tortellini for dinner and there was no change on this trip. We were all tired after a long day of hiking and went to bed at 9 p.m. In the morning at 7 a.m. we cooked oatmeal, packed up all our gear in our backpacks and hiked two miles back to the parking lot.

I really enjoyed this trip because of the challenging long hikes, which included the rock scaling, and the climb to the North Peak. I look forward to many more Scouting trips in the future.